Today we’d like to introduce you to Raeanne Niemer.
Hi Raeanne, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Get emPowered Fitness Studio (GEFS) opened its doors for business on December 1, 2013 with myself and 4 other trainers. We offered group fitness classes, 1-on-1 personal training sessions, and medical massage treatments in an 1100 square foot space to our members who we called emPeeps (emPowered people). GEFS is unique in that we train our emPeeps barefoot in physical, mental, and emotional fitness. We are proud to train from the ground up and the inside out. We believe when your head and heart are in the right place, your body will follow. Our philosophy includes training the whole person to empower and improve their quality of life so they may thrive in activities of daily living. Empowerment is key to what we offer.
In 2016 we launched our empowerment coaching program, Are You Enough? focusing on self-acceptance, self-love, positive body image and happiness. We also added 3 more trainers. We quickly outgrew our space within the first two years of service. However, it took us an additional 3 years to find a new space to relocate.
On October 29, 2018, we opened our new location 3 miles down the road and 3 times larger than our original space. We had 45 people assisting the transfer of all our equipment, including appliances and flooring, to make for an easy move. Our community is amazing! We continued to grow rapidly in our new space, adding more trainers, another massage therapist and an administrative team to work the front desk, sales and marketing. To better serve our neighbors, we started offering monthly events of workouts and educational classes, along with community outreach.
Then we all know what happened in 2020. With a 6-month shutdown from March 2020 through January 2021 we struggled like every other fitness facility. With the assistance of our emPeeps generosity, we were able to keep the doors open. We gathered and trained outdoors as well as provided online workouts and chat times to keep our emPeeps moving, connected, and positive during those challenging times.
Since reopening post-COVID, we are striving to grow and regain our momentum. GEFS has grown to 14 team members now offering group fitness classes, 1-on-1 and small group personal training sessions, medical massage, stretch therapy, and empowerment coaching. Our philosophy and values have not changed which continues to make us different for our demographic. We service about 200 emPeeps per week with the intention of continued growth. Our clientele range from 9-86 years old with the same intention of becoming their best self to live their best life.
We celebrated our 10-year anniversary in 2023 with a fabulous open house including friends, family, emPeeps and newbies. It was a wonderful celebration of how far we have come since day 1. We plan to continue to grow and develop, offer more programming and education, including an online presence of our Are You Enough? empowerment coaching program. Our mission is to educate, train, and inspire our clientele to live a healthy, balanced and empowered life.
As we approach our 13-year anniversary, I am in awe of what GEFS has accomplished, weathered through, and become. I am so proud and humbled by the success of this beautiful facility, its team over the years, and the vision to come, staying true to its core values and philosophy.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I don’t believe any business has had a smooth road. It’s how you react to the challenges that expose character. Finding a new location was our first challenge. We had difficulty finding a large enough space with high enough ceilings. After nearly signing leases on 6 spaces, our current space became available and is the perfect space for us. Patience served us well.
COVID lockdown was our most challenging roadblock. I struggled with staying informed with changing protocols, keeping our community connected, and keeping my team motivated and positive. Those were scary and uncertain times. With donations and pre-purchases from our emPeeps, we were able to keep the studio running. I did take out a loan from the SBA which came due with interest in September of 2022. I was no better off at that time financially. This forced me to hire a business coach, which was the best business decision I have made yet, to assist me in getting the studio back on its feet. It was a daunting and exhausting 6 months; however, it paid off with new financial gain, a new mindset from me, and a wonderful new relationship with my business coach. Again, patience and hard work served us well.
Our current roadblock is finding strong, invested team members. As we continue to grow, I am looking for more help. Since COVID, the fitness professional pool of available instructors who align with our core values seems to be slim. I know several fitness friends who left the industry during COVID due to lack of work and pay. The same with massage therapists. We are always looking for new team members who align with our values and philosophy, like to have fun, and are committed to serving others.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
GEFS is a unique facility that strives to educate, train, and inspire our clients to live a healthy, balanced and empowered life. We train more than the physical body. We also focus on mental and emotional health in all of our services. Training and focusing on the whole person are what set us apart. GEFS also trains from the feet to the top of the head, including foot fitness and vestibular training to enhance nervous system communication and balance.
The services we offer include group fitness classes, personal training sessions, medical massage, stretch therapy, and empowerment coaching programs.
We are known for our barefoot training and empowerment coaching in our fitness services as well as our stretch and massage services.
I am most proud of how GEFS has stayed true to its original core values and philosophy. It could have been easier to change our approach to cater to weight loss or body image with shoes on. Instead, we have stayed true to weight loss and body image being a secondary result from an empowered attitude and approach done barefoot.
What I would like to express to your readers is that GEFS is a family of caring, educated and uplifting people who will share all of their gifts and talents to help our clients reach their goals in living a fulfilled, healthy, empowered life.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I have learned on my journey is that I cannot run this business without guidance, support, and encouragement from others. My team, my business coach, my emPeeps, my family, and my community have walked with me every step of the way. They see my hard work, dedication, and commitment to making GEFS a safe, positive, empowering environment.
I started this business as a mission to serve others with fitness in a different way. My business coach taught me that, “If I didn’t start treating the studio like a business, I wouldn’t have a place to fulfill my mission.” My mindset had to change, and my supporters continued to walk alongside me to ensure success.
Pricing:
- Group Fitness Classes range from $21 per class to unlimited monthly for $131 per month
- Personal Training ranges from $59 per session to 2x per week for $439 per month
- Stretch Therapy cost is $45 for 30 minutes of assisted stretching
- Massage ranges from $45 for 30 minutes to $130 for 90 minutes
- Empowerment coaching online subscription coming in January!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.getempoweredfitness.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gefitnessstudio/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063571301150
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@raeanneniemer5775
